U.S. President Biden says Trump should have injected himself with bleach

Joe Biden jokes about Donald Trump suggesting bleach injection, highlighting Trump's chaotic presidency in fundraiser for 2024 election

Taking a dig at his predecessor, U.S. President Joe Biden has said that Donald Trump should have injected himself with a little bleach, for suggesting during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic that a disinfectant "injection inside" could help protect against the deadly virus.

Mr. Biden, the Democratic Party's presumptive candidate for the presidential elections in November, made the remarks during an election fundraiser hosted by prominent Indian-American billionaire and venture capitalist Vinod Khosla on May 10.

During the fundraiser, the 81-year-old leader made several jokes about his 77-year-old Republican Party rival Mr. Trump, asserting that the former president "is in trouble, and he knows it".

“Remember him saying the best thing to do is to inject a little bleach into your arm… I wish he had done it a little bit himself,” Mr. Biden said, in an apparent jibe about Mr. Trump's comment during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

ALSO READ | Square one: On the 2024 U.S. Presidential election as a Biden-Trump rematch

Mr. Trump, President at that time, had said during a White House coronavirus task force briefing, "...I see the disinfectant where it knocks it (the virus) out in a minute. One minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning? So it'd be interesting to check that."

"We’ll never forget about the pandemic. He knew (it) was serious, and he acknowledged it ... but wanted to not — just keep everybody from responding to it," Mr. Biden said during the fundraiser.